Chemo and Radiotherapy

Alleviating the Symptoms of Chemo and Radiotherapy Treatment

Modern treatments for treating cancer are becoming more and more effective but many of them still carry side effects which can reduce a patient's quality of life.

Sometimes the level of side effects can become so intolerable that the only course of action is to postpone or discontinue doses of chemo and radio therapy which obviously is not ideal. The aim of any treatment regime must be to allow the prescribed treatment to complete in the most appropriate time with the most appropriate doses.

Radiotherapy treatment can induce "burns" on the surface of the skin where the dose is administered. This can happen immediately upon commencement of treatment or can happen up to several months after radiotherapy has been discontinued.

Similarly, certain chemotherapeutic drugs can cause the patient to develop skin problems which may vary from acne-like spots to generalised lesions across the whole body. One of the worst side effects causes the palms of the hands and soles of feet to become red, inflamed and blistered. Hands can lose sensation, making it difficult to hold objects or even fasten buttons!

Many departments are now using moisturising creams to help reduce the effects of these symptoms but recent studies have suggested that DermaSilk Therapeutic Clothing can play a significant role in the rehabilitation process.

DermaSilk in Radiotherapy

DermaSilk clothing has been shown to help reduce the risk of skin damage caused by radiotherapy in a small pilot study involving patients with breast, head and neck and anal cancer. All patients wore appropriate DermaSilk garments for the duration of their radiotherapy course.

All patients completed their radiotherapy courses within the allotted time with no delays due to side effects. Compliance was high and there were no cases of skin infections or need for pain relief.

DermaSilk was shown to protect the skin, reducing the inflammatory process and accelerating tissue regeneration, leading to an improved Quality of Life. Click here to view the poster presentation

DermaSilk in Chemotherapy

43 Patients with various forms of chemotherapy induced skin problems were enrolled in the study. All carried on with their prescribed chemotherapy whilst wearing the DermaSilk for the duration of the observation and for several months afterwards.

61.9% of the patients reported a significant improvement in their symptoms and 38% reported a good improvement after one month of usage. Skin integrity (as measured by trans-epidermal water loss) improved significantly and the clinicians noted that the improvement in the symptoms and clinical signs was greater with DermaSilk compared with their previous experiences before using DermaSilk.

The authors also noted that no patient suffered a relapse of their skin symptoms during the 4 month follow up, despite continuing their chemotherapy. Click here to view the poster presentation

With Cancer therapy costing the NHS thousands of pounds to treat and common side effects threatening to cause the postponement or cessation of recommended therapy perhaps the inclusion of 2 DermaSilk garments into the treatment regime may help in keeping therapy on track whilst improving patient comfort, reducing infections and enhancing quality of life.

If you are also being kept up at night by night sweats caused by your cancer therapy then click on www.dermatherapybedding.co.uk to find out more about this clinically proven product.